Le Musée de Saint-Boniface Museum, National historic site and museum in Saint-Boniface, Canada.
The Musée de Saint-Boniface occupies the former Grey Nuns' Convent, a 2.5-storey white oak log building constructed between 1846 and 1851 using Red River frame (piece-sur-piece) construction without nails. Measuring about 30.5 by 12.2 metres, it has a basement, two full storeys and an attic, and is among the largest known oak log structures in North America.
The Grey Nuns arrived in the Red River Settlement in 1844 at Bishop Provencher's request and moved into the partially built convent in December 1846; construction finished in 1851. The building served as orphanage, school, seniors' home and St. Boniface's first hospital. The museum opened there in 1967 after the City of St. Boniface acquired it.
The museum displays Franco-Manitoban and Métis heritage through everyday objects and personal items that tell the story of these communities. Visitors can see how these cultures shaped and continue to influence life in the region.
The museum is at 494 Taché Avenue in Old St. Boniface, on a large treed lot south of Saint Boniface Cathedral and near the Université de Saint-Boniface. The building has a basement, two full storeys and an attic, so allow time for several levels of exhibits. Guided and school tours are offered; the Riel collection and the chapel display are the highlights.
The building's white oak logs were joined piece-sur-piece without nails, and Parks Canada credits its design to Abbé Louis-François Richer Laflèche, with Louis Galarneau and Amable Nault as principal builders. At about 30.5 by 12.2 metres, it ranks among the largest known oak log structures in North America.
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